AEO Readiness Checklist for NZ Businesses

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Mark the items you can honestly verify today. This is a planning tool, not a promise of rankings or citations.

How to use this checklist

This is not a magic “AEO score” and it is not an official Google checklist. It is a practical way to identify the gaps that commonly prevent a business from being understood, trusted and selected across traditional and AI-assisted search experiences.

Work through each item honestly. A tick means the statement is true and can be supported. If it is not true, do not panic or try to fix everything at once. Highlight the gaps that affect your main services, core locations and real customer decisions, then turn those into a small sequenced plan.

What this checklist is built around: people-first service content, a clear technical foundation, accurate business information, legitimate proof and a repeatable measurement process. Google’s guidance for generative search stresses these enduring SEO fundamentals and cautions against shortcuts such as special “AI” markup, synthetic mentions or mass-produced pages.

Business identity and local proof

The business name, phone number, website and primary contact details are consistent on the website and Google Business Profile.The Google Business Profile is claimed, accurate, maintained and clearly represents the services and service areas offered.Each core service has a clear page explaining what is included, who it is for and how customers can take the next step.The website clearly states the city or service areas where the business genuinely operates.There is an accessible About page that explains who leads the business, relevant experience and why customers can trust it.Customer reviews, testimonials or client proof are presented accurately and linked to real sources where appropriate.

Useful service and answer content

Each priority service page answers the practical questions a buyer asks before contacting the business.Headings are descriptive and make the page easy to scan for a person, not just a crawler.Important claims are supported by specifics, examples, qualifications, process information or customer evidence.The site has useful educational content connected to the services the business actually sells.Internal links guide readers from guides and FAQs to the relevant service, location or contact page.No important page exists only to repeat a city, keyword or AI-search phrase with little unique value.

Technical clarity and structured information

Core pages return a 200 status, use a valid self-referencing canonical URL and are included in the sitemap where appropriate.The site is crawlable and does not accidentally block important pages in robots.txt or meta robots directives.The website works well on mobile, uses readable text and gives visitors a clear route to the main content.Structured data accurately describes visible page content and has been checked with Google’s Rich Results Test where relevant.The site avoids duplicate content, broken internal links and legacy URLs that should be redirected.Important information is present in HTML and not hidden behind interactions or unavailable to visitors without JavaScript.

Trust and authority signals

The business has a clear author, owner or expert identity connected to the content where expertise matters.The website includes real-world proof such as reviews, case studies, qualifications, awards or project examples where available.Business claims are specific, verifiable and not inflated beyond what can be supported.Relevant third-party listings, industry memberships and genuine local citations are accurate and consistent.The business earns legitimate mentions and links through good work, useful resources and real relationships rather than bought or manufactured signals.Privacy, contact and other trust pages are easy to find and reflect how customer data is actually handled.

Measurement and improvement

Google Search Console and GA4 are installed and reviewed so search visibility and user behaviour can be measured.The business has a small list of commercially important AI/search queries, including relevant location and service context.AI visibility checks are recorded with the platform, query, date, cited sources and competitors rather than treated as a one-off screenshot.The business has a process for turning observed gaps into an ordered content, technical or local-visibility improvement plan.Progress is reviewed over time using meaningful lead and visibility indicators, not only vanity metrics.

What your result means

Put the findings into action

Frequently Asked Questions

Progress	Interpretation	Sensible next step
0–10 items	The foundations are incomplete or not yet documented.	Start with business identity, essential service pages, technical crawlability and a maintained Google Business Profile.
11–20 items	There is a base to build on, but gaps may be limiting trust, clarity or conversion.	Choose the largest gaps on core service pages, local proof and technical structure before publishing more general content.
21–26 items	The business has a sound foundation and can focus on evidence, authority and query-led improvement.	Build case studies, useful original resources, credible third-party mentions and repeatable measurement.
27–29 items	The basics are in place, but continued monitoring and quality control still matter.	Use the AI visibility measurement framework to find the specific queries or platforms where performance can improve.

No. This is an Arise SEO practical readiness checklist for business owners. It is based on durable SEO and local-business foundations, not a claim that Google or another AI platform uses a fixed AEO score.

No. There is no magic pass mark and no guarantee of citation. Use the checklist to find obvious gaps, prioritise the items that affect your customers and core services, and improve them consistently.

No. Accurate structured data is helpful for clarity and relevant search features, but it does not replace useful service content, genuine proof, technical health, local trust or measurement.

Choose the two or three highest-impact gaps you can verify, create a small implementation plan and re-test after the changes are live. If you want an outside view, run the free checker or book a call with Arise SEO.

How to use this checklist

Business identity and local proof

Useful service and answer content

Technical clarity and structured information

Trust and authority signals

Measurement and improvement

What your result means

Put the findings into action

Frequently Asked Questions

Need help prioritising the gaps?